The regulator said the so-called counter cyclical capital buffer (CCyB) will be cut to 0% from 1% no later than April 2 and it plans no subsequent increase before the first quarter of 2021 at the earliest.

The central bank will meet domestic retail banks on Thursday to discuss a broader response to the crisis and said the banking system has in recent years built up capital and liquidity buffers precisely for periods such as this.

(Reporting by Padraic Halpin; Editing by Hugh Lawson)